Impact of Positron Emission Tomographic Myocardial Perfusion Imaging on Patient Selection for Revascularization

BACKGROUND Positron emission tomography (PET) myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI) quantifies left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) at peak stress. PET LVEF reserve (LVEF-R = stress LVEF -rest LVEF) offers diagnostic and prognostic value.OBJECTIVES The purpose of this study was to determine if PET LVEF-R identifies patients with survival benefit postrevascularization.METHODS We followed 14,649 unique consecutive patients undergoing Rb-82 rest/stress PET MPI from January 2010 to January 2016 (excluding known cardiomyopathy). Adjusted Cox models were built to predict all-cause death, and the 3-way interaction of known coronary artery disease (CAD) (prior myocardial infarction/revascularization), LVEF-R, and 90-day revascularization was tested.RESULTS Known CAD was present in 4,982 (34.0%). Ischemia was detected in 5,396 (36.8%; >= 10% in 1,909 [13%]). Mean LVEF-R was 4.2% +/- 5.7%, and was <= 0, 1 to 5, and >5 in 3,349 (22.9%), 5,266 (35.9%), and 6,034 (41.2%). Over median follow-up of 3.4 years (IQR: 1.9-5.2 years), 1,324 (8.1%) had 90-day revascularization, and there were 2,192 (15.0%) deaths. In multivariable modeling, there was a significant 3-way interaction among known CAD, LVEF-R, and 90-day revascularization (P = 0.025), such that LVEF-R <= 0 identified patients with survival benefit with 90-day revascularization in those without prior CAD (interaction P = 0.005), independently beyond percent ischemia and myocardial flow reserve. Among patients with known CAD, LVEF-R was not prognostic of death (HR: 0.99; 95% CI: 0.98-1.02; P = 0.98).CONCLUSIONS A lack of augmentation or drop in LVEF with vasodilator stress on PET MPI independently identifies patients who have better survival with revascularization within 90 days post-MPI compared with medical therapy, in absence of prior myocardial infarction or revascularization. Multiparametric assessment of ischemia with PET can opti-mize post-test management.

Automated summary

PET LVEF-R can be a significant predictor of prognosis in patients with cardiovascular disease. It can identify patients who benefit from revascularization within 90 days and improve survival, especially in the absence of prior myocardial infarction or revascularization.